


the year of no tin

by dark_and_terrible



Category: Love By Chance 2, บังเอิญรัก | Love by Chance (TV)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Romance, Separations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:49:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26890120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dark_and_terrible/pseuds/dark_and_terrible
Summary: Tin comes back from being overseas for over a year and Can isn’t sure how to act or what to feel - especially since he’s spent months convincing himself Tin probably wants to break up.
Relationships: Can & Tin Medthanan, Can/Tin Medthanan
Comments: 14
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter 1

It had been tough. 

The year of no Tin. 

But Can hadn't wanted to keep him from going away to study. It was a good English program. Tin would do well at it. 

Can...though...he faltered a little bit after school. He had been hoping Tin would ask him to move in (a small hope that would have alarmed him if he had) but the late-night conversation that had begun with a full course meal from his chef and ended with - well, touching - hadn't gone the way he had expected it to. 

_I got accepted to a program in America._

Tin's breath had been sweet, tinged faintly with alcohol. Warm across his mouth. 

He was almost annoyed Tin had stopped kissing him only to tell him that he would be leaving. 

There were pros and cons. 

Serious pro: despite being rich and handsome Tin didn't do much to get out of his zone. He'd been coming out of his shell, and his desire to travel to America to learn more should be taken as a good thing. 

Serious con: he wouldn't be able to see him for an entire year. 

Pro: Tin was smart. Can needed to support him. 

Con: Would Tin forget about him in a group full of cooler, more American people? 

Can had done his best to put on his most pleased face. He had told him that it was only a year (but so much could change in a year), and that it would go by in a blink (it didn't). Then, he'd been unable to stop his eyes from welling up with tears - a problem that had presented itself almost exclusively after he'd realized he'd been catching feelings for Medthanan - and Tin had told him he wouldn't go. 

Can had won out, though. He believed that an entirely new world might open up if Tin could get away from the strangling pressure of his family. It might feel like there was more than one way to breathe. 

At first, Tin had been reluctant. He had acted like he didn't like his roommates and that he didn't want to make friends - and they would spend a long time talking on video chat. Late into the night, which gave Can the small feeling of Tin being there, but it really wasn't the same. It was different waking up next to the black void of your cellphone screen instead of having someone warm and solid next to you. 

As the year progressed, Tin's grumpy face became more infrequent. He had friends in the background behind him, friends would wave and say 'hello Can!' before they would begin speaking in a language he really didn't understand. And then the calls got shorter. 

Short enough to prompt Can to ask Ae about it. Ae had dealt with it before. 

He was worried. Worried that Tin had found someone else. 

Someone cooler. Someone more attractive. Someone more his style. 

And Ae had told him he was probably just busy. 

He had heard a lot of that in the last six months. Tin did try to call him, but the calls were brief. 

Only: 

_Cantaloupe. I miss you._

And Can would say: When are you coming home? 

Even though he knew the answer might likely be...never. 

Maybe he didn't want to. 

Can had gotten a job delivering food. And during the weekdays he helped teach little kids to play soccer. It wasn't much, and he still lived at home with his mother. His sister was off on her own adventures...never quite having forgiven him for dating Tin before she could. 

Thailand was beginning to shift into fall, and it was raining a lot. And Can was doing his best to stay busy. 

"Can!" His boss shouted from the kitchen. "I know it's time for you to go, but can you do one last one? Kit is gonna be late." 

"I did one last one last night and stayed until midnight," Can whined. "Can't someone else do it?" 

"Come on, I'll give you a free bag of chicken." 

"Fine," Can said. He was never one to turn down free food. It made him easy to take advantage of.

He finished the delivery, and felt proud of himself as he was walking home with his free chicken. His mom would be happy, anyway. 

It was a wet walk home. He'd been forced to break out his old sneakers in lieu of summer changing into fall, and he stepped through errant puddles and tried to avoid full-on sinkholes as he went. Can always forgot his umbrella, and by the time he was home his hair was dusted with water droplets and the shoulders of his shirt were damp. 

He didn't mind. He liked the chill of the rain. 

The house was already dark. He looked at the time on his phone and realized it was the night his mother went out and played games with her friends. 

He was going to have to eat his free fried chicken alone. He hoped it wouldn't deter from the free-is-good taste. 

Trying not to think about how lonely it was to eat fried chicken alone, he kicked his shoes off near the door and headed to the kitchen. 

His mother had left him a note on the fridge. 

_There are side dishes in the containers, Cantaloupe. Don't wait up!_

Can pulled the note from the fridge and set it carefully on the counter. 

Halfway through setting up his lonely dinner, his phone started buzzing in his pocket. Annoyed, he fished it out of his pocket and tried to avoid the screen with his greasy fingers. He was so surprised to see it was Tin calling that he almost missed the call. 

"Tin!" he said, his voice hopeful that he hadn't lost him. 

"Cantaloupe," he said. "Where are you?" 

"...Out with...friends," he lied. Not well. 

"Really? To me it looks like you're at home. Alone." 

Can's expression was one of beguilement. He almost dropped his phone when he looked at the window and towards the door. He only saw rainy blackness out beyond. 

Tin hadn't phased out of his dreams. 

"How did you know?" 

"Just a guess. What are you eating?" 

"Fried chicken," he said. 

"Don't you get sick of that stuff?"

"Not if it's free," he mumbled. 

Tin scoffed. Can imagined how he looked. Smiling, but still petulant. 

Can did drop his phone when there was knocking on his door. 

"Ai'Tin?" he said, quickly picking it up. 

The phone had gone dead. 

"Damn," he muttered. 

The knock came again, and this time louder. Can wiped his hands (poorly) and got up. 

He was wondering who would show up at that time of night. It was too early for his mom to be home, and sometimes she slept on her friend's couch after drinking too much. He doubted he would see her home at all. Then he became concerned she had been forced to leave early for a reason.

He opened the door without looking. 

"Ma? I thought you-"

Can looked up to find Tin standing there. 

He had to stop and look again to make sure he was seeing what he was seeing. 

It was definitely Tin. 

He looked...really good. Tall, broad. Fair-skinned. He'd cut his hair, so Can could see his eyes. He looked lighter. Happier. 

Can found himself stammering a little. Not only had they been apart for a little over a year, he had spent the last months trying to prepare himself from the eventual heartbreak of Tin telling him he didn't ever want to come back to Thailand. 

"Cantaloupe," he said. 

Can wanted to drag him inside and kiss him until his mouth was bruised - but he also wasn't sure how to act. 

Where, exactly, did they stand now? 

"You...don't look happy to see me," he pointed out. "Aren't you going to invite me in for some free, cold chicken?" 

"I...reheated it," he said, lamely. 

There had always been something singular about the way Tin looked at him. Can tried to shrink underneath his gaze. It was like he could strip him down until only the soft parts were left, and Can had never quite known how to bear it. Sometimes it made him feel seen, and other times it made him feel...exposed. 

This was one of those exposed times. 

"I've got a better idea," he said. "Why don't you come to my place?" 

"Won't all of your family want to see you?" 

"They don't know I'm here yet," he said. "They'll be back tomorrow night."

"Well, I...was about to eat.."

"My chef made your favorite." 

His chef's recreation of his mom's pork and noodle dish was _almost_ as good as hers. 

He licked his bottom lip. 

"Cantaloupe," Tin said. "What's wrong?" 

"Uh...nothing. Let me put the food away. I'll be right back." 

"Hurry," he said. 

Can nodded and left the door open a crack. He hurried to put the food back into the containers. He pulled out another one (he was sure it was the wrong size and shape and it would probably irritate his mother that he had used it) and shoved the fried chicken into the fridge. 

"Should I pack a bag?" 

"I have everything you need." 

"Okay," Can said. 

If Tin was going to break up with him, at least he would get to eat the chef's cooking one more time. 

He put his shoes on and left a note for his mom. 

>>>

"You're really quiet," Tin pointed out, taking his eyes off of the road for a minute to look at him. "I thought you'd be happier." 

"I am happy," Can said. "Surprised. I might be in shock." 

He smiled, and Tin smiled back. 

"I've missed you," he said. "Really. A lot." 

"I missed you too, Tin," he said. "Really. A lot." 

Tin reached across the console and took his hand. It was warm and steady. Can was sure he would melt into a puddle right then. 

"Your family is out of town?" He asked, awkwardly clearing his throat. 

"Mm," he said. Tin didn't really love talking about his family. Especially his brother, who had done just about everything possible to make sure they didn't stay together. "Where's your mom?" 

"Game night," he said. "I left her a note. How...long are you here for?" 

"Only a couple days," He said, disappointment dripping in his tone. "But I wanted to see you." 

"That's obvious, you pulled a horror movie in front of my house." 

Tin smirked. 

"Still your favorite type of movie?" 

"Yes," Can said. 

They had taken this drive many times before Tin had gone away to study. It felt odd now, doing it a year later with the knowledge that Tin would be leaving him again. But there was also something oddly comforting about it, too. Nostalgia washed over him, and memories of nights when they'd sat on the hood of his car together just to avoid going inside came up. Nights when they sat out on the river and awkwardly kissed each other - Can still unsure of what he felt or if he was feeling anything at all. 

It brought up other memories, too: Tin being surprisingly gentle during their first time together, and Can feeling really unsettled afterward. Unsettled because of how much he had liked it - and unsettled because he was sure it couldn't be right. 

He had always been sure he wasn't attractive enough for Tin. 

Even then. 

The house was well lit. It looked bigger, somehow. Tin parked the car and Can got out. Tin waited for him, his hand outstretched until Can took it. They walked up to the house together, hand in hand. Tin handed his car keys off to someone who would pull it into a vast garage. A familiar face met them at the door, and they exchanged pleasantries. That it was nice to see them both after such a long time. 

"This way," Tin said, breaking out in front of him to lead the way to a room of the house that had been repurposed as a dining room. 

The food was all laid out. Can was feeling almost too nervous to eat, but he knew if he didn't Tin would really know something was wrong. 

Pulling his hand away, he tried to move over to the table. Tin grabbed his hand again, stopping him in his tracks. He pulled him back. 

"What?" Can asked. 

"I think you owe me something," he said. "I've gone through all this trouble to feed you." 

Can looked annoyed. And then, he looked confused. 

"Still thickheaded, I see," Tin pressed his finger to his own mouth. 

Can leaned forward and gave him a quick peck. 

"Oh come on," he said. "I've been gone for a year and that's the best you've got?" 

Can recognized what he was doing. The oh-so-reliable method of melting down Cantaloupe's defensive walls. 

Can pressed his lips together. He leaned up. This time it was a more subtle brush, but it lasted a few moments longer. Just when he was about to pull back, Tin snaked his arm around his waist and pulled him closer. From there, he didn't get a reprieve. Tin parted his lips with his tongue and kissed him like he meant it, hot and fast and full of...something? He pulled him so close Can had trouble catching his breath. Can dug his fingers into the front of his shirt, pulling so tightly that buttons might pop. 

Tin's hand grasped the line of his throat, pulling him back gently. Can nearly stumbled as the contact broke. He definitely wasn't thinking clearly after that. 

"I missed you," he said again. 

His eyes were softer, a liquid melting brown that Can fancied himself only he got to see. 

He licked his lips and glanced down at Tin's mouth. 

"I'm hungry," he breathed out shakily, if only because he was sure what would happen wouldn't be dinner if they kept going. 

Maybe a kind of dinner. 

Tin laughed. 

"Let's eat. We can watch a movie after." 

"It's so late," Can said. 

"I know, but I don't want to go to bed." 

_No, me either._

>>>


	2. Chapter 2

They ate dinner. 

Tin was hungry, though no one could ever top Cantaloupe's ability to pack away food and still remain pretty skinny. He ate a couple of servings, and when they were finished the meal was cleared away for them. Can had always found Tin's wealth a little uncomfortable. He was lazy, but that didn't mean he enjoyed the thought of someone else having to do it for him (unless it was his mother). 

"What do you want to watch?" 

"You can pick," Can said, after they'd made their way over to the couch in front of the big television. 

"Wow, really?" Tin asked. "You never let me pick." 

"Consider it a welcome home gift." 

"That's not fair," Tin said. "I was expecting a real welcome home gift." 

"How was I supposed to know?" Can asked. 

"Cantaloupe," Tin said, reaching for his arm and pulling him towards the gravity well of the couch. 

Can let out a small 'huff' of air as his balance was disrupted and he fell back against the couch and Tin. Tin wrapped his arms around him, preventing him from getting up. 

"I thought we were supposed to be watching a movie?" 

"I know I didn't call as much as I should have," Tin said against the shell of his ear. 

The breath against the tender flesh gave him goosebumps and he fought the desire to shiver and tilt his head back. Instead, he turtled, pulling his head closer to his chest. It was like a buzzing bug had just flown by and he was trying to avoid it. 

But his body betrayed him in one way or another. He was flushed. And Tin was good at noticing that. 

"I didn't say anything," Can defended. 

"You didn't need to," Tin replied. "I can tell you're upset." 

"I'm not upset," he insisted. "I just...wasn't expecting you were going to come home." 

"Why not?" Tin said, genuine surprise in his tone. "I said I would." 

"I don't know," Can said. He'd never been good at vocalizing emotions on the spot. 

It usually took him a few days. 

"You don't?" 

"I guess...I thought you were really enjoying it there. I thought maybe you wanted to stay." 

"Not without you," Tin whispered into the crux of his neck and shoulder. 

He wasn't able to fight the shiver this time. 

"I thought you were going to break up with me." 

"What?" he asked loudly, leaning back. 

"You didn't call as much. Every time you did you were with someone else." 

"Cantaloupe," Tin said. "Look at me." 

Can, after a few excruciating moments, did as he was told. 

"I love you." 

It wasn't what he was expecting to hear. He had the odd sensation of having swallowed a pill that had gotten stuck in the hellish spot right in the middle of his esophagus. 

"Oh," was all he managed to choke out. 

Tin was looking at him in that woefully intense way he had been used to before. Now that he wasn't used to it, he felt himself flushing up to the very tips of his ears. 

He felt kind of dumb. And then he felt a weird sort of elation. He hadn't been thinking about how sad the thought made him - how sad that Tin might be relying on someone else to help him breathe. 

"Say something, Canteloupe," Tin said. 

Can didn't know what to say and he wasn't the best at it anyway, so he leaned in and kissed Tin on the mouth. 

It wasn't necessarily an avoidance of the topic, but more a being unable to put it to words and wanting to show it instead. 

The contact lingered sweetly, a warm mingle of breath. 

Tin's fingertips lingered underneath his jaw. They splayed out and encompassed his throat. He could feel the warmth of his soft hands, hands that were softer and more privileged than his own. In comparison, everything about Can was coarse. 

But Tin handled him as if he were fine. As fine as he was. And it didn't even register that Tin was carefully lifting up his shirt. 

It was Tin who moved them forward, the tip of his tongue slipping carefully into Can's mouth. He tasted a bit like the sweet tea they'd been drinking, the sugar clinging to his tongue. 

>>>

Later, Tin was asleep. His face pressed into a pillow, his arm thrown on across the other side of his bed. Can watched him sleep, his features serene and open. He traced his fingers down his spine, feeling out each vertebra beneath the skin. Proof that Tin lived and breathed and was there, with him. 

The house was quiet. It long beyond the time that most of the staff had probably gone home or gone to bed. Can didn't want to check the time, but he carefully shifted towards the floor to root around in the pocket of his discarded jeans for his phone. 

He squinted when the screen lit up. 

3 AM. 

It had started to rain again. 

Tin's bedroom was huge compared to his. 

A few candles had been lit here and there, and the electric lights were off. 

Can decided to let Tin sleep. He was a little amazed that Tin had stayed awake for as long as he had. Slipping out of bed he sneaked into the bathroom. He'd been in it before, but it took his eyes a minute to adjust to the bright light. The shower water was quieter than in his bathroom at home, which thundered through the pipes and alerted everyone in the house to the fact that someone was taking a shower. 

He stepped underneath the stream when it got hot. 

His thoughts were empty as he stood underneath the soothing stream of warm water. His eyes were closed, and he didn't even realize that Tin had slipped it behind him until he felt the warmth of him pressed against his back. 

He let out a little noise of surprise and looked over his shoulder. 

"Just me," Tin said. 

"I didn't mean to wake you up," Can said. 

"I didn't want to sleep." 

"You're tired," Can pointed out. 

Tin was kissing his damp skin. His shoulders, his neck. It was a little ticklish and Can squirmed and smiled. 

"I only have a small amount of time." 

Can frowned, his head rolling forward a bit - hanging down into the stream as Tin held onto his waist. They were close, so close that Can realized he should be feeling more awkward about it. But, for once, he didn't. 

Can reached forward and pulled the removable shower head off of the wall. He quickly turned around and aimed it at Tin, who was looking at him with the deepest sense of "betrayal". 

"Don't make me wash your mouth out with soap," he said, holding his hands up to his face in an attempt to avoid the spray. 

"It's revenge for not calling me more often," Can said, laughing. 

Eventually, Tin got the showerhead back from him. 

"You're in trouble now," he said. 

And they both laughed. 

And Can said it. 

"I love you." 

Tin smiled. The showerhead was forgotten, and Tin pulled him in and kissed him. 

They finished showering with minimal injury, though Tin did drag his teeth along Can's shoulder in response to being sprayed in the face with water. 

>>>

They watched movies through the dark rain. 

Can fell asleep without meaning to, and when he woke up again it was because someone was turning the doorknob on Tin's room. The room was bright and full of sunlight, the rain having broken sometime earlier. The air felt dense and heavy.

Can sucked in a deep breath of air. He rubbed his eyes and sat up straight. 

"Tin," he mumbled. 

The man was a warm lump next to him, and he groaned in response. 

"Tin," Can tried again, reaching out to gently shake him out of his cocoon. 

"What," he said. 

"Who is that?" 

Tin sat up, his eyes still closed. He glanced at the door, looking more than grumpy. 

"I don't know," he murmured. 

They were both dressed. Can was glad for it, considering there had been a time it would have been unfortunate to be walked in on. Can slid out of bed, shuffling over towards the door. 

"Oh, I didn't know you were home," one of the housekeepers said from the other side of the door. 

Can had ducked back underneath the blanket, hoping he wouldn't be seen waking up in Tin's bed with him - though from there it just looked like they were _really_ good friends. 

"This can wait," Tin said. "Can you bring some breakfast?" 

"Of course," the party on the other side of the door said. "I'll be back." 

"Uh," Tin said, giving leave for pause. "Is my family home?" 

"Not yet." 

"Thank you." 

Tin had definitely gotten a little nicer. 

"Cantaloupe," he said, laughter in his voice. "They know about us. You can come out." 

Can felt that age-old embarrassment creeping back in. He pulled the blanket down and sat up. Tin was looking at him, a smile on his face that was a mixture of satisfied and proud. 

Can's stomach rumbled. 

Tin scoffed and then grinned. 

"Predictable." 

They ate breakfast in Tin's room. 

They talked about what Tin had done in America. 

"How long will you be gone this time?" Can asked, shoveling some rice into his mouth with a spoon. 

"Few months." 

"And then what?" 

"I think that depends on you," he said. He had already finished breakfast and he was looking at his phone. 

Can didn't know what he meant, how could it depend on him? 

"What are you doing today?" 

"I was supposed to work," Can said, reaching out and stealing Tin's phone. 

Tin let him, his hand still held up in the air as if he was still holding his phone. Can just checked the time. His phone was dead. 

"I'm supposed to work," he said. 

"Chicken?" 

"Mhm." 

"Can you get out of it?" 

"Aren't you supposed to be here to see your family?" Can asked, wary of Tin's motives. 

"I will be. Can you get out of it?" 

Can sighed and started dialing the number to the shop out of memory. 

>>>

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i take requests! find me over on tumblr as darkterrible.


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